Chapter Two
Lark
My eyes stayed firmly shut as I burrowed deeper beneath the comforter and rolled onto my side. The mattress was surprisingly comfortable—not as comfortable as my own bed, but definitely better than I would’ve expected from a motorcycle clubhouse.
I pulled the blanket up over my shoulder and sighed happily. Perfect.
If I ignored the fact that I was sleeping in a strange room with unfamiliar sounds drifting through the walls, I could almost convince myself I was back in my apartment. Almost.
A floorboard creaked somewhere down the hall. A toilet flushed. Someone laughed, the sound muffled through the walls.
Definitely not my apartment. I frowned into my pillow.
I cracked open one eye and saw the digital clock on the nightstand glow a cruel, offensive 7:17.
Seven.
In.
The.
Morning.
Who voluntarily woke up at seven in the morning? Psychopaths, that was who.
I buried my face deeper into the pillow. I was going back to sleep. My body had barely started relaxing when someone knocked on the bedroom door.
Three quick taps and I groaned loud enough that whoever stood on the other side probably heard me.
Seriously? Couldn’t a girl sleep? I squeezed my eyes tighter and considered pretending I wasn’t in here. Maybe whoever it was would go away.
Then my brain betrayed me. Oliver.
Maybe it was Oliver. Maybe he’d spent all night thinking about what happened in the hallway. Maybe he’d realized turning me down had been the biggest mistake of his life. Maybe he was standing outside my door with coffee and an apology.
I smiled despite myself. That smile lasted approximately half a second.
“Lark?” Ever’s voice floated through the door. “You awake?”
My smile disappeared. Well... part of me was relieved.
As embarrassed as I still felt about last night, facing Oliver first thing in the morning sounded about as enjoyable as licking a frozen flagpole.
“Come in,” I called.
The door swung open, and Ever peeked her head inside. “There you are.”
“There I am,” I agreed.
She smiled before slipping inside and quietly shutting the door behind her. Instead of grabbing the chair sitting in the corner, she marched straight toward the bed.
“What are you—” My question ended in a laugh as she launched herself forward. She belly-flopped onto the mattress beside me and the entire bed bounced.
I bounced. The pillow bounced. I think the room might have bounced, too.
Ever let out the happiest sigh I’d ever heard. “Oh,” she mumbled into the blanket. “This bed is comfy.”
I stared at the side of her face.
Her cheek was smashed into the comforter, making one eye look slightly smaller than the other. A goofy grin spread across her face like she didn’t have a single worry in the world. “What the heck are you doing in here?” I asked, laughing. “Shouldn’t you be in bed with Jude?”
She turned her head just enough to look at me, her cheek still mushed into the mattress. “Jude and I just got done saying good morning.” Her grin somehow grew. “He’s in the shower, and I thought I’d come check on you. Make sure you’re settling in.”
I snorted. “Girl.”
“What?”
“You’re talking like you’ve lived in this clubhouse since birth.”
She laughed.
“I’m pretty sure you’re just as much of a newbie as I am.”
“Technically.”
I raised an eyebrow. “But?”
“But...” She shrugged one shoulder. “I’ve got Jude to help soften the blow.”
My eyes widened dramatically. “Oh.”
She blinked innocently. “What?”
“So that’s what the kids are calling it these days.”
Ever’s mouth dropped open. “Lark!”
“What?”
“You know exactly what.”
I grinned. “I do.”
She grabbed one of the extra pillows and smacked me in the shoulder with it. “You are terrible.”
“I am hilarious.”
“You are impossible.”
“I’ve been told that before.”
She laughed again, the sound filling the room. I liked Ever.
We’d become friends working together at the Dairy Bar, but somewhere between long closing shifts, complaining about customers who couldn’t decide between chocolate and vanilla, and cleaning melted ice cream off counters at midnight, she’d turned into one of my favorite people.
Seeing her this happy made me happy.
Jude looked at her the way every woman deserved to be looked at—like she was the only person in the room.
The laughter faded, leaving a comfortable silence between us.
Ever stared at the ceiling. “So...”
I already knew that tone. “So?”
“I’m kind of surprised.”
“About?”
She turned her head toward me again.
“I figured Oliver would be standing guard outside your door.”
The smile slipped off my face. I sighed so heavily it probably qualified as cardio.
Ever immediately pushed herself upright. “Lark?”
“Hmm?”
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Nothing doesn’t come with a sigh like that.”
I scrunched my nose.
She pointed at me. “Spill, Lark.”
I groaned. “Do I have to?”
“Absolutely.”
I flopped onto my back and stared at the ceiling. “It was so bad.”
Ever folded her legs beneath her. “What was?”
“My attempt at flirting.”
She blinked. “...Go on.”
I covered my face with both hands. “I embarrassed myself.”
“I highly doubt that.”
“I absolutely did.”
She waited patiently.
Finally, I peeked at her through my fingers. “So...”
“So...”
“I kind of...”
“You kind of...”
“I might’ve...”
She laughed. “Oh my gosh, just say it.”
I dropped my hands. “I hit on Oliver.”
Ever blinked once. Twice. “You what?”
“I hit on Oliver.”
“When?”
“Last night.”
“The hallway?”
“The hallway.”
Her eyebrows climbed toward her hairline. “What exactly happened?”
I took a deep breath. “Okay.” I sat up beside her and tucked one leg beneath me. “He walked me to my room.”
“Makes sense.”
“He unlocked the door.”
“Makes sense.”
“He told me it was mine for now.”
“Makes sense.”
“I didn’t go inside.”
She leaned forward. “You didn’t?”
I shook my head. “I stepped closer.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh.”
“I put my hand on his chest. I called him Ollie.”
She slapped a hand over her mouth. “No...”
“Oh yes.”
“What did you say?”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “I told him that since he was stuck with me... maybe we should have a little fun and get to know each other better.”
Ever stared at me completely speechless.
I gave her an awkward smile.
“And?”
“And...”
I sighed. “He told me goodnight.”
Silence. “He... what?”
“He told me goodnight.”
“That’s it?”
“That was it.”
“He didn’t flirt?”
“No.”
“He didn’t smile?”
“He smiled.”
“He didn’t kiss you?”
“No, Ever. He told me goodnight, and then he walked away.”
Ever’s mouth slowly fell open. “What an idiot!”
I burst out laughing. “That’s what I’m saying, but I’m also embarrassed as hell.” I shrugged.
“But I’d do it again if I had the chance.”
Ever stared at me as if she’d never seen me before. “I had no idea you liked Oliver.”
Neither had I. My cheeks warmed. “I didn’t either.”
“What?”
“I swear.” I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “I’ve always thought he was cute.”
“Who hasn’t?”
“But...” I searched for the right words. “Last night was different.”
“How?”
“I don’t know.”
I really didn’t. One minute he’d been walking me down the hallway like the responsible club guy, making sure I got settled into my room.
The next, I couldn’t stop looking at him.
The way he listened when I talked. The way he held himself.
The way he never once made me feel like I was annoying him, even though I was ninety percent sure I talked too much.
Something had clicked. Hard.
“I just looked at him,” I admitted softly, “and suddenly I wanted to know him.”
Ever smiled. “Aww.”
“Don’t ‘aww’ me.”
“I’m going to ‘aww’ you.”
“It was humiliating.”
“It doesn’t sound humiliating.”
“He rejected me.”
She reached over and bumped my shoulder. “I don’t think he rejected you.”
I frowned. “Ever. I basically threw myself at him, and then he walked away.”
“Hear me out.”
I crossed my arms. “I’m hearing.”
“You literally just met him one-on-one.”
“We’ve known each other for years.”
“You’ve seen each other for years.”
That was different, I guess.
“You’ve never actually spent time together,” she continued. “And now you’re living here.”
“I know.”
“He was probably trying to do the right thing.”
I let out a slow breath. “Maybe.”
“He seems like that kind of guy.”
“He does.”
“He probably didn’t want to take advantage of the situation.”
I hadn’t thought about it that way. I’d only thought about the embarrassment. The awkwardness. The sting of hearing “goodnight” instead of anything remotely romantic.
Ever smiled knowingly. “I don’t think you scared him away.”
“No?”
“I think you surprised him.”
I laughed. “I am surprising.”
“You are.”
“I’ve been called a lot of things.”
“I’m sure.”
I leaned back against the headboard. “So...”
“So?”
“What would you do?”
“If I liked someone?”
“Yeah.”
Ever didn’t even hesitate. “We both know what I do if I like someone. I don’t tell them and then pine after them for years. Have you forgotten the past years with me and Jude? Now if I were you, I’d go for it.”
“I did.”
She laughed. “You absolutely did.”
“I crashed and burned.”
“I don’t think you did,” she reasoned.
“I absolutely did.”
She shook her head. “No.”
“What do you mean, ‘no’?”
“I mean...” She smiled. “One awkward night doesn’t decide how the story ends.”
I looked at her and sighed dramatically. “So you’re saying I should try again?”
“I’m saying...” She nudged my shoulder. “Don’t give up if he’s worth it.”
I smiled slowly. “I’ve never been much of a quitter.”
Ever grinned. “Thatta girl. I can say with firsthand experience, these bikers are worth it.”
A familiar male voice called Ever’s name.
She smiled before looking back at me. “I should probably get back to Jude before he thinks I left him.”
I laughed. “Probably.”
She climbed off the bed and straightened her shirt. At the door, she looked back over her shoulder. “For what it’s worth...”
“Yeah?”
“I think you’ve got a better chance than you realize.” Before I could answer, she slipped out into the hallway, leaving me alone again.
I stared at the closed door for a long moment before falling back onto my pillow.
A grin spread across my face. Oliver might’ve told me goodnight. He might’ve walked away. He might’ve thought he’d ended whatever had started in that hallway.
Too bad for him, he clearly didn’t know me very well yet.
Because if there was one thing everyone who knew me could agree on, I wasn’t the kind of girl who gave up easily.